Formed in 1970 on the breakup of the Nice, this British ensemble took shape under the direction of its founding bassist and vocalist Lee Jackson, born Keith Lee Jackson on 8 January 1943 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. The group steered toward a pop-focused direction that contrasted with the technically driven approach of its predecessor. Although the band maintained an active touring schedule and issued four albums that received substantial promotional support, frequent personnel shifts ultimately stalled its advancement. Initial guitarists Charlie Harcourt and Mario Tapia, along with drummer Tommy Sloane, gave way to later arrivals that included the multi-instrumentalists John McBurnie and Brian Chatton, yet these changes failed to reverse Jackson’s declining prospects. In 1974, after concluding that the keyboard approach of recent recruit Patrick Moraz, born 24 June 1948 in Villars-Ste-Croix, Morges, Switzerland, did not suit the ensemble’s melodic emphasis, Jackson departed to establish Refugee around the newcomer’s agile playing. The remaining members carried on briefly under the shortened name Heights before disbanding.
